1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a silver halide color photographic lightsensitive material. More particularly, the present invention relates to a silver halide color photographic lightsensitive material which is not only excellent in antistatic effect but also has reduced crawling (cissing) occurring at the time of, for example, high-speed coating operation to thereby enable stable production thereof.
2. Description of the Related Art
Compounds having fluorinated alkyl chains are known as providing surfactants. Such surfactants can effect various surface modifications due to the peculiar properties (water repellency, oil repellency, lubricity, antistatic property, etc.) of the fluorinated alkyl chains, and are hence employed in the surface treatment of a wide variety of base materials, such as fibers, cloth, carpets and resins. Further, when a surfactant having fluorinated alkyl chain (hereinafter referred to as “fluorinated surfactant”) is added to an aqueous medium solution of substrate of varied type, not only can a uniform coating film free from crawling be formed at the time of coating film formation but also an adsorption layer of surfactant can be formed on the surface of the substrate to thereby cause the surface of coating film to have the above peculiar properties of fluorinated alkyl chains.
In photographic lightsensitive materials as well, various surfactants are employed and play important rolls. The photographic lightsensitive materials are generally produced by coating a support with a plurality of coating liquids each containing an aqueous solution of hydrophilic colloid binder (for example, gelatin) in sequence so as to form a plurality of layers. However, frequently, the formation of a plurality of hydrophilic colloid layers is performed by simultaneous multilayer coating operation. These layers include an antistatic layer, a subbing layer, an antihalation layer, silver halide emulsion layers, interlayers, a filter layer, a protective layer, etc. These layers are loaded with various materials for exerting their respective functions. Further, the hydrophilic colloid layers may be loaded with polymer latexes for enhancing the physical properties of films. Still further, in order to attain the incorporation of functional compounds of sparing water solubility, such as a color coupler, an ultraviolet absorber, a fluorescent whitening agent and a slip agent, into hydrophilic colloid layers, these compounds directly or after dissolution in a high-boiling-point organic solvent, such as a phosphoric ester compound or a phthalic ester compound, may be emulsified and dispersed in a hydrophilic colloid solution and used to prepare coating liquids. Thus, the photographic lightsensitive materials are generally each composed of various hydrophilic colloid layers, and at the production thereof, it is required to carry out uniform high-speed application of coating liquids containing various materials without defects, such as crawling and coating unevenness. For meeting such requirement, it is often effected to add a surfactant as a coating auxiliary to coating liquids.
On the other hand, the photographic lightsensitive materials are brought into contact with various materials during the production, use for photographing and development processing thereof. For example, when a lightsensitive material is in wound form during the processing, the back layer formed on the back side of the support may be brought into contact with the surface layer. Further, while being conveyed during the processing, the lightsensitive material may be brought into contact with stainless steel, rubber rollers, etc. When brought into contact with these materials, the lightsensitive material at the surface (gelatin layer) thereof is likely to have positive charge and occasionally induces unwanted discharge with the result that undesirable exposure marks (known as static marks) remain on the cclightsensitive material. Compounds having fluorine atoms are effective in reducing of the charging of gelatin, and hence a fluorinated surfactant is often added thereto.
The sensitivity in the ultraviolet region is determined by a specific sensitivity of a silver halide emulsion, a gelatin used as a dispersant, and materials having absorptions in the ultraviolet region, including an ultraviolet absorber. Incorporating of a non-lightsensitive silver halide emulsion, a gelatin, an ultraviolet absorber, a hydrophilic colloid dispersion, etc. in a protective layer so as to control the spectral sensitivity of the ultraviolet region is known as a means for reducing undesirable exposure marks on the lightsensitive material even if unwanted discharging occurs, while incorporating of these materials in the protective layer would affect the uniformity of coating film at the time of high-speed coating operation and cause crawling and unevenness, thereby limiting a productivity increase. In view of the encountered difficulty in required simultaneous accomplishment of charging characteristics and high-speed coatability, it is vital to develop a surfactant, in particular, fluorinated surfactant that realizes excellent charging characteristics and high-speed coatability.
As mentioned above, surfactants, in particular, fluorinated surfactants have been employed as a coating aid for realizing the uniformity of coating film or as a material capable of simultaneously realizing the uniformity and the prevention of charging with respect to photographic lightsensitive materials. Examples thereof are disclosed in, for example, the following patent literature: Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. (hereinafter referred to as JP-A-) 49-46733, and JP-A's 51-32322, 57-64228, 64-536, 2-141739, 3-95550 and 4-248543, However, the disclosed surfactants do not necessarily exhibit satisfactory properties in view of the demand of recent years on the sensitivity enhancement and high-speed coating operation with respect to photographic lightsensitive materials. The disclosed surfactants are those which limit the use of ultraviolet absorber so as to be unable to satisfactorily attain a sensitivity decrease in the ultraviolet region. Therefore, there is a demand on achieving of further improvement leading to development of a fluorinated surfactant being excellent in charging characteristics and high-speed coatability and thus providing a lightsensitive material wherein the sensitivity decrease in the ultraviolet region has also been attained.